BIDDING THE MEDICAL MODEL GOODBYE! NEW WAYS OF THINKING ABOUT DEMENTIA

摘要

Although dementia is a medical diagnosis, there are currently no disease-modifying therapies and health services have little to offer people who receive a dementia diagnosis. However, the Medical Model exerts a powerful grip on thinking about dementia, limiting the exploration of other models and approaches that may be of benefit. This opportunistic study explored the ease at which alternate models from other areas of health and disability could be explained to and understood by a range of health professionals. Data were captured from 40 staff in a psychiatric hospital during an interactive Grand Rounds session. A true case scenario was used with phased presentation of four different theoretical models: Medical Model, Recovery, Self-Management and Rights-Based. The session concluded with a video of the individual describing his life after adopting technology. Understanding was assessed through written answers regarding benefits and limitations of each approach to the case scenario and a final question asking which approach best explained his experience. The results suggested that conveying conceptual alternatives to the Medical Model is possible in a simple and accessible way. The written answers conveyed understanding of the three alternate models and their application to the case scenario. Fewer than 10% of respondents proposed that the Medical Model best explained the experience of the participant “loving every minute” of his life. This suggests the time has come to explore alternate models and lessons learnt from other fields to enable people to live well with dementia.